“The way of peace they do not know, and there is no justice in their paths; they have made their roads crooked; no one who treads on them knows peace. Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us; we hope for light, and behold, darkness, and for brightness, but we walk in gloom.” Isaiah 59:8-9 ESV
Reflection: how can the sins of others impact us?
There are a number of nations around the world where Christians have to be in hiding. They cannot openly express their beliefs, nor their worship of God. So they have to meet secretly. If those who are “in power” find out, there can be severe consequences; imprisonment and even worse. But, the freedom to express our belief in God, in our savior Jesus Christ, is also limited in so-called Christian nations of Europe and Americas. Although the Christians have been in the majority in many countries for decades and maybe centuries, secularism has crept in and most countries are no longer Christian. If we measure in what laws are written and actions taken, that is. They might still be called a Christian nation, but judging by their fruits, they really are not. Christians have to be careful what they express of their faith at work, and in the public sphere. So many keep their faith to themselves, afraid of a confrontation, and instead they let others who clearly have no love for God “run” their country, and even the world. But,
do the sins of a nation have any impact on the Christians of that nation?
Isaiah chapter 59 is a fascinating study, and possibly very relevant to our times as we see so many nations involved in wars and conflicts. If we look at the first focus verse today, we see this “thirst” for conflict. “The way of peace they do not know, and there is no justice in their paths; they have made their roads crooked; no one who treads on them knows peace.” Isaiah 59:8 ESV. Now, we can certainly look at the big conflicts in the world right now, but it also is relevant to local levels. It is the same “spirit of conflict” that we see in so many areas of life. Because, as the Lord says, “there is no justice in their paths;”. They are not looking to do what is right, but instead create and have “made their roads crooked;”.
At first, we might think that this is their problem, they have to live with their choices and consequences. But, here we have to put on the breaks, for a while. Here is where we get wisdom from the Lord through Isaiah. If we read very carefully chapter 59, it is split 3 sections, of who this is talking about. The chapter start out with “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.” Isaiah 59:1-2 ESV. Notice here the references to “you” and “your” from verse 2-8. It is talking about those in the nation who are the wicked ones, the sinners. But, then there is a transition, in verse 9-15, of whom are impacted by this wickedness. Let’s read v9,
Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us; we hope for light, and behold, darkness, and for brightness, but we walk in gloom.” Isaiah 59:8-9 ESV. We see the transition from “your” to “us” and “we”. And, boy do we see this today, just thinking about the big conflicts over the past few years, in Ukraine and now in Iran. The impact is enormous, on the innocent and perhaps specifically on Christians. Sadly, there are many leaders who call themselves Christian, across several nations, that seem to encourage these conflicts. That cause God-fearing people to spin around, all confused. I don’t remember any lesson, nor any mission, given by Jesus that supports this. We are to go out into the world with the good news of the gospel of Christ, and make disciples. Changing the world for the better, not by destroying it.
The actions of local and world leaders impact Christians. Perhaps the question is, what kind of world and world leaders do we want? We all need to stand up for what is right, but we need to in particular challenge our Christian leaders to also stand up for what is right, not just go along.
